Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Land Use Environment topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Residents raise concerns about proposed data centers near San Marcos over water and environmental impacts
Summary
A resident warned the Commissioners Court that two proposed data centers near San Marcos could draw large amounts of drinking water, affect floodplain areas and impact the local environment; she said one operator would not publicly disclose details.
A San Marcos resident told the Hays County Commissioners Court on March 11 that two proposed data centers near Francis Harris Lane — one owned by a Cloudburst subsidiary — pose environmental and water‑use risks for the area and for Hays County ratepayers.
Abigail Lindsey said one property owner, identified as "Mister Mayberry," has applied to change a property’s preferred land scenario from conservation cluster to commercial employment low for a site at 9904 Francis Harris Lane. She said another site, owned by "Data center LP L.B.L.P., a subsidiary of Cloudburst Data Center," is at 2955 Francis Harris Lane and that approximately 95.69 acres of farmland with century‑old oaks and York Creek run through one parcel.
"This property maintains a New Braunfels address but resides in both Hays County and Guadalupe County," Lindsey told the court. She said York Creek contributes to a large portion of the land being in the floodplain and that the parcels were recently removed from the extraterritorial jurisdiction of San Marcos, limiting city oversight.
Lindsey said both data centers, if built, would be about 2.9 miles apart, draw from the same Crystal Clear Special Utility District and be served by the same electric co‑op. She said Alliance Water supplies drinking water to San Marcos, Kyle, Buda and other areas and that collectively these utilities serve hundreds of thousands of rate‑paying customers. "Individually, these data centers would be pulling drinking water out of our supply, potentially in amounts ranging from 40,000 gallons to 1,400,000 gallons daily," Lindsey said.
Lindsey said Cloudburst has refused to publicly acknowledge the location of its flagship campus and that local, county and state leaders had no prior knowledge of Cloudburst's intentions until she contacted them. She asked the court to add the topic to a future agenda to seek more information and public engagement as the project moves through San Marcos planning and zoning and city council review.
Why it matters: The comments raise questions about local oversight, groundwater and surface water use for large data center operations, floodplain impacts and coordination among municipal and special district water providers. Lindsey asked the court to consider adding the item to a future agenda so county officials and residents can get more information.
Ending: The court did not take immediate action on the request but heard the concerns during the public comments period and recorded the request for follow up.
